2023-08-28 12:47:16
Nearly 170 migrants have been stranded since August 24 aboard a Spanish Civil Guard patrol boat, opposite the Mauritanian port of Nouadhibou. As the situation in the ship deteriorates, the showdown between Madrid and Nouakchott continues. Mauritania refuses to let these exiles disembark, leaving from neighboring Senegal, and Spain does not intend to welcome them on its soil.
Four days crammed on the deck of a Spanish Civil Guard ship, in precarious conditions at the mercy of bad weather, and where health and safety measures are not met. This is the experience of 168 migrants intercepted by a Spanish boat about 150 km from the Mauritanian coast. The exiles, who had left Senegal, sought to reach the Canary Islands, some 1,700 km away.
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But since Thursday, August 24, they have been stuck in the open sea, opposite the Mauritanian port of Nouadhibou. Nouakchott refuses to welcome these migrants on its soil, or even to let the Spanish patrol boat dock in one of its ports. Negotiations between Mauritania and Spain were still ongoing on Monday, but no solution has yet been found.
Hunger-strike
On the ship, the Rio Tajo, living conditions are basic. To protect against the scorching sun, awnings were improvised. Exiles do not have access to toilets or showers. To defecate, they are forced to use a seal or do so overboard. As for food, the crew cooks rice for the migrants.
This daily life, made of uncertainty and anxiety, is inevitably accompanied by tensions. On Saturday, crew members fired into the air in an attempt to quell possible riots. Exiles had started a hunger strike earlier in the morning to protest against their living conditions. But dissension broke out in the group, with some migrants deciding to eat anyway. One of them was assaulted by strikers, according to the Spanish press, which quoted a police source.
This incident led the Spanish authorities to reinforce the security of the patrol boat: 16 armed agents from the Spanish maritime service came to support the 20 people from the Civil Guard.
2) What is being experienced in the Civil Guard patrol boat is inconceivable. 168 Senegalese rescued in the Atlantic who are still on board anchored off the coast in Nouadibou at the insistence of disembarking there. On board, really dangerous situations.
???? @the country pic.twitter.com/sxAmqz5UJ3
— Txema Santana ✳️ (@txemita) August 28, 2023
The following hours were calmer, the hunger strike ended and the exiles spent another night on the deck of the ship, which was about 50 meters long.
The Spanish journalist Txema Santana affirms on X (ex-Twitter) that a doctor was able to board to treat the injured migrants and that some were able to give news to their relatives. Nevertheless, “the mental and physical health” of the castaways “deteriorates”, as the days pass.
The Civil Guard union, Justice for the Civil Guard (Jucil), for its part asked the authorities to take “strong decisions in the face of the episodes of riots in which the integrity of the crew was put in danger “. “The Civil Guard is a police force which has, among its main missions, the control of illegal immigration. It cannot be used as an NGO” for rescue at sea, insists Jucil on X (ex-Twitter) .
“Excellent” relations with Mauritania
Since 2016, Mauritania has received more than 10 million euros per year from Madrid to contain irregular immigration. This sum includes the training of police officers, the purchase of equipment or even fuel costs, as the Spanish daily recalls. The country. In addition, Nouakchott allows the Civil Guard to act on its territory to prevent exiles from setting sail, by authorizing the Spaniards to deploy two ships, a helicopter and a land patrol in Mauritania.
#LAST MINUTE| Maximum attention and support at this time from AUGC to our colleagues who are anchored with the Tagus River Patrol Boat in Nouadhibou Bay with 170 immigrants rescued in canoes.
Mauritanian authorities do not allow rescuers to disembark. pic.twitter.com/vKtEw3CcyQ
— AUGC Civil Guard ???????? (@AUGC_Comunica) August 26, 2023
The country is seen as a good student: Mauritania is one of the states that blocks exiles the most on their way to Europe. In 2023, only five canoes managed to reach the Canary Islands from the Mauritanian coast.
The Spanish Ministry of the Interior therefore does not intend to undermine its relations with this African country, which it considers “excellent”. In this case, “continuous talks” are taking place in order to reach a solution quickly, insist the Spanish authorities. According to the Professional Association of the Civil Guard (AUGC), a transfer to the Canary Islands is impossible due to bad weather, and a return to Senegal is excluded.
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